What Are Love Handles?

Love handles are fat around the sides of the waist just above the hips. They have a tendency to produce a "muffin top" when one squeezes oneself into tight pants. Unlike fat around the belly area, love handles are situated in the oblique area, which is more difficult to cinch up with conventional exercise.

Most individuals confuse love handles vs belly fat when in fact they are significantly different from each other. The fat in the stomach would be the belly fat, and the love handles move around the sides and waist region and hence become a bit more difficult to find.

Why Do Love Handles Form?

There are several various reasons why love handles occur and not necessarily due to weight gain. The most probable ones are:

  • Poor nutrition: Eating added sugar foods, refined carbohydrates, and bad fats leads to fat storage around the midriff.
  • Sedentary lifestyle: Physical inactivity reduces the metabolism rate and raises fat storage.
  • Stress & hormones: Elevated cortisol stress hormone can lead to extra fat storage around the waistline and midriff.
  • Age: With the decrease in metabolic rate, the body accumulates fat in the hip and waist area.
  • Genetics: They are genetically predisposed to accumulating fat in the hip and waist area.
Foods that cause love handles also include fried food, sweets, alcoholic drinks, and snack foods.

Why Are Love Handles Hard To Lose

Love handles are made up of resilient fat, i.e., the body retains this area compared to other areas. The midriff area contains visceral and subcutaneous fat, and both of them don't burn in a single area. Unlike arms or legs, the waist doesn't slim down. Instead, it requires strength training for love handles, cardiovascular, and dieting for overall waist fat reduction.

Best Exercise to Burn Love Handles

Fat loss from body fat cannot be done through spot-loss, yet certain exercises for love handles will tighten and tone the obliques and core. Include them with cardio for love handles to enhance fat loss.

Cardio Exercise

General fat loss needs cardio. Running, cycling, swimming, or HIIT workout burns body fat and waist fat.
HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training): Short resting intervals and high-intensity intervals are an effective method to burn fat-resistant calories at home.

Strength Training

Lean muscle accelerates metabolism, and the body consumes fat even during off days. Compound exercises such as squats, deadlifts, and kettlebell swings must be given the highest priority as the best workouts for love handles.

Side Fat Exercises

Certain side fat exercises directly target obliques and waistline:
  • Russian Twists
  • Bicycle Crunches
  • Side Plank Hip Lifts
  • Mountain Climbers
  • Oblique V-Ups

Read More: Difference Between Love and Lust


Yoga

Yoga for love handles relaxes, dissolves tension, and melts fat. Boat Pose, Side Plank, and Triangle Pose are three of the most effective movements. The above fat-burning exercises should be followed with body training and cardio training to produce noticeable results.

Diet to Lose Love Handles

No matter how rigorous your exercise routine is, diet will be the deciding factor to lose side fat. A diet to reduce love handles should include:

  • Protein food: Chicken, fish, eggs, and beans are filling and support muscle development.
  • Fiber food: Raw fruits, greens, and whole grain ease digestion and reduce bloating.
  • Healthy fats: Nuts, avocado, and olive oil metabolize fat.
  • Hydration: Proper water intake will lead to detoxification and water loss.
Don't eat processed food, fried food, alcohol, and sweets as they are foods that cause love handles and will close down fat burning.

Lifestyle Changes to Help with Fat Burning

Apart from diet and exercise, some lifestyle changes for love handles may help fat burning too:

  • Less stress: Additional stress raises the amount of cortisol, and that assists in fat storage around the midsection. Practice yoga and meditation.
  • Sleep enough: Slow metabolism and hunger are caused by not sleeping long enough. Sleep 7–9 hours a day.
  • Consistency: It will not work with gimmicks. It is a matter of good habits done on a regular basis.
  • Don't sit all day: Breaking up sitting time or walking during the day increases calorie burning.
  • Track progress: Tracking your exercise and meal trial helps with consistency.

How Long Does It Take to Lose Love Handles

No specific time since each body is unique. Average 6–12 weeks with proper diet, workout routine, and lifestyle, change will be seen. Metabolism, body composition, and workout intensity all contribute to how quickly love handles lose fat.

Keep in mind love handles are resistant fat and need to be patient. Addition of tips to burn love handles fat such as strength training, cardio, and calorie-restricted diet plan guarantees gradual progress. Some people may also see results with stubborn fat removal at home methods like HIIT, yoga, and side planks when combined with diet.

Conclusion

Love handles are difficult to lose but will always be regained. Familiarity with the role of love handles and a regimen of diet, side fat exercises, yoga, weight lifting, and cardio can cause you to have a smaller waist. More important is the fact that an enthusiasm for health and not vanity sustains the process. If you wish to lose love handles, will power would be the most significant consideration. Slowly changing habits, smart eating, and regular exercising can help you lose side fat and possess higher confidence levels in the long run.

Please book an Online appointment with the best Plastic Surgeon in Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, and all major cities of Pakistan through InstaCare, or call our helpline at 03171777509 to find the verified doctor for your disease.